Don’t you know that the kids aren’t alright?
by AnnaUnicorn
Summary: The hurricane was astounding. It spluttered water in every direction, quickly swirling faster and faster. The entire Atlantic was now a void of black. Thunder clouds loomed to cover the sun, turning day into night. The hurricane grew taller and taller until it became one with the sky. And in the middle of it all? Her husband.
1. Annabeth

The hurricane was astounding.

It spluttered water in every direction, quickly swirling faster and faster. The entire Atlantic was now a void of black. The ink dripped onto her face and ran down her cheeks, mimicking blood. Thunder clouds loomed to cover the sun, turning day into night. Lightning flashed through the sky showcasing Zeus's fear of what was to come. The hurricane grew taller and taller until it became one with the sky. She couldn't tell where the ocean began and the sky ended. All she knew was dark. And in the middle of it all?

Her husband.

"Percy!" She shouted. "Percy stop!"

Her cries fell on deaf ears; the son of Poseidon could not hear her pleas.

If Annabeth was anyone else she would have mistaken her husband for a god. His black hair rippled across his face in the wind. His expression ruthless as the storm blew around him. His posture was rigid, and his muscles tight as he effortlessly commanded the sea in his anger, which shone through his eyes. And his eyes- oh gods his eyes scared her more than the storm. The green so dark that they sucked in remaining light. They were spinning and spinning, it was almost as if _he_ was the hurricane himself. Pools and pools of agony seemed to flow through them as he destroyed everything in his path.

She stood helpless as he ruined their home. The wooden boards from the cabins floated past where she and everyone stood on camp half blood hill. They were safe for now, but the water kept rising and rising _and_-

"Annabeth!"

_What?_

"ANNABETH!"

The daughter of Athena's eyes snapped open. She sat up so fast that her head collided with Percy's. "Wha-what?" The room was spinning and everything was too loud. Her mouth was dry as though it was stuffed with cotton, but her cheeks were wet with tears.

"Hey," Percy rushed to reassure her, his voice gruff from sleep. "Hey, Annabeth it's okay it was just a dream. I'm right here, everything's okay."

Annabeth's vision cleared. She was laying on her and Percy's queen sized bed, as her husband loomed over her. His eyes were worried and his thumbs delicately wiped her tears away from her cheeks.

"What happened?" She asked as she sunk back into the bed, feeling more exhausted than she did when she fell asleep.

"I don't know. You started saying my name in your sleep." Percy said as he pulled her close to him. "Was it Tartarus?" He asked as he met her eyes.

His eyes.

His eyes were so dark that they sucked in remaining light. They were spinning and spinning it was almost if _he_ was the hurricane himse-

"Annabeth?"

Her vision cleared. She didn't know what she was thinking, his eyes were a clear sea green and right now they were staring at her with worry.

She smiled at him softly before reaching up and capturing his lips with her own. "Don't worry about me," Annabeth said as she pulled away. "It was just a dream, go back to sleep."

Percy seemed reluctant to do so as he studied her. She could tell he didn't believe her, but he laid back down with more persistence. She knew he would ask again in the morning, but she didn't know what she would tell him. It definitely wasn't a Tartarus dream like he suspected. Which wouldn't have been too unusual, but thankfully the Tartarus nightmares have died down since they fell five years ago. But no, this dream- this dream was something else. It felt too real and too sudden, almost like a _vision_.

Percy sighed as he wrapped her up in his arms and pulled her until her back was pressed against his chest. He planted soft kisses on her ear and the side of her face before tightening his hold on her and falling back asleep.

Annabeth lay there, staring up at the ceiling as the sounds of her husband's breathing filled the room. She knew one thing, she realized, that her dream was definitely _not_ a dream.

**Constructive criticism is greatly appreciated. Please leave a review so I know that you like the story so far. Even if it's just a hi and you're on a guest account. **

**Thanks! **

**~Anna**


	2. Annabeth 2

"Good morning," her husband greeted her in a soft whisper.

"Morning," she mumbled as she crossed their apartment to curl around Percy who stood at the stove. She felt him sigh as she rested her head in between his shoulder blades. He set his hand on top of hers where it lay on his stomach.

"What are you making?" Annabeth murmured into his back.

"Pancakes." he replied, reaching over her for more flour.

"Blue?"

"Of course."

Annabeth smiled sleepily. Ever since they got married seven months ago, Annabeth has gotten used to her tongue pretty much always being stained blue.

"Come on," Percy said, tapping her hand as he turned around to peck her lips. "Let's go eat."

Sitting at the small round dinner table across from her husband made Annabeth feel calm. The sunlight trickled in through the blinds and reflected off the wooden floors of their kitchen. The fresh smell of pancakes wafted towards her. Sally's recipe accounted for the heavenly smell. Sitting there, Annabeth almost forgot about her dream. Whenever Annabeth got demigod dreams it usually meant that the world was ending. So does this mean the world is ending? Again? With her husband in the middle of it? _Again_?

Annabeth massaged her temples, feeling an onslaught of a headache coming on.

"Are we going to talk about last night?" Percy implored her curiously, dipping in his toe to test the waters.

Annabeth froze. She wasn't expecting him to bring it up this early. Usually when something's on his mind he waits til after breakfast to address it. He's usually too focused on devouring food to pay attention to anything else.

"I had a dream," she began carefully. "A demigod dream."

"A demigod dream." Percy mused. "What kind of demigod dream?" Percy questioned her, peering at her over his stack of blue elysium.

Annabeth paused. Should she even tell him? She could be wrong and it could be nothing. She didn't want to worry him if it was nothing. But gods, it felt so _real_. More real than any demigod dream she's ever had. So real that when she woke up, she felt as though her reality was the dream instead. She had to tell him; harm could only come from keeping secrets. Plus they were married- they were a _team_. They don't keep secrets from each other. They work better together. Plus he'd see right through her lies anyway.

"A nightmare. You- you were angry. Livid even." Annabeth worried that her husband would perceive this the wrong way. She knows that one of Percy's worst fears is that she'll become afraid of him. Ever since Tartarus when he exploited his full range of his power, Annabeth saw Percy in a different light. She's always known that he was powerful (how could he not be when he's the son of Poseidon), but she had no idea that what she had been seeing was only scratching the surface of what he was capable of. Annabeth did not fear her husband as she did not believe he would ever hurt her, but she was afraid of what he could become with that kind of power (idly, she thought Luke is probably the reason she felt cautious about power in the first place).

"Livid," he repeated slowly. Testing the word in his mouth as if foreign. "Do you know why? What was I doing?"

Uh oh, Annabeth thought. His eyebrows are furrowing again. She's made him anxious. Annabeth reached across the cool countertop to grab his hand, rubbing her thumb over the scarred knuckles in an attempt to reassure him.

"Commanding a storm," she replied slowly. "You created this large hurricane from the ocean at Camp Half-Blood. It was destroying cabins but you didn't stop. I was screaming your name but you couldn't hear me." Annabeth let her story out in a rush. Holding her breath when she was finished.

Percy sat back, leaning in his chair as he contemplated what she said. "Schist," he breathed as he sank down to bang his head on the table. "And you're sure it was a demigod dream?" he asked, voice muffled.

"Positive."

Percy groaned, he remained with his face pressed against the wood. He was still clutching her hand.

"I'm sorry." She whispered. And boy was she ever. They finally got the life they've wanted. The life they've fought for- the life they went through _hell_ for. She's an architect (well granted she's still an intern) and he's a firefighter. They come home and eat dinner together. On weekends they binge watch TV shows and fall asleep at eight pm. Sometimes she's the little spoon and sometimes she's not. They fight over hot water and bills and- she loves it. She loves their lives. They're normal, some might even call them boring. She wouldn't change a thing and she knows Percy wouldn't either.

"Hey, no," Percy rushes to reassure her. "You know it's not your fault right? We can't help that these types of things happen to us. They just do." He shrugs helplessly.

"Maybe we should talk to Chiron about it? Maybe Rachel? Get an idea of what we are dealing with here."

"Okay," Percy nods in agreement. "But that sounds like a tomorrow problem."

"Percy," She lets out something between a sigh of exasperation and a laugh.

"Come on," Percy says as he gets up to grab their dishes. "I have work today and so do you. The world can wait."

XxxXxxX

That night Annabeth settled in beside her husband to sleep. Tomorrow morning Percy and her would head to camp to sort out this whole mess. Sure they could just iris message them, but they have been meaning to visit anyways. Plus it's Friday and Annabeth misses her friends and family.

She felt something smooth brush her neck.

"Percy. What are you doing?"

"I'm planning,"

"Planning," she repeated slowly.

"Mmhm on how to get you to shut up." He wiggled his dark eyebrows at her.

"Perce, I'm not talking."

She can feel him smirk against her neck. "Well you are now aren't-"

She grabbed the nearest pillow, leaned back and hit him with it as hard as she could.

She could feel his laughter coming through the bedding as she smothered him.

"Wise girl. You're thinking too loud, I had to stop it some how."

"By seducing me?"

Percy faked a look of confusion "Seducing? I'll show you seducing. Are you Harambe? Because my-"

"Oh my gods Percy please stop." She interrupted him. She was laughing so hard she could feel her diaphragm shaking.

"Well it worked didn't it?" He smiled at her crookedly in an endearing manner. He reached out to tuck her loose blonde curls behind her ear.

"I got you to smile," he said in response to her questioning look. He sounded very accomplished, like an eight year old showcasing his newly cleaned room to his mom.

"Yeah," she snorted. "At your expense."

"I'd like to think I wowed the laughter out of you."

"Mmhmm consider me wowed."

"I know you're being sarcastic, but I'm going to pretend that you're just being a supportive wife."

She shook her head at him. How did she get so lucky to forever bunk with this child?

"I love you." She told him as she reached over to turn off their bedside lamp.

"I love you too," he whispered to her in the encasing darkness. "So much."

She grabbed her husband so they were both laying down. She reached up to place a goodnight kiss on his lips. Before she could move away, she felt his hand entangle in her hair as he tilted his head to kiss her deeper. His mouth moved insistently against hers, moving closer even when there was no more space left between them. She knew then that he was just as scared as she was. He can make all the jokes he wants, but it won't stop the impending doom the gods have placed upon them.

He pulled away to press his forehead against hers. She felt him swallow. The idea of their life together being in jeopardy frightened him.

"Hey," She said. "It's going to be okay, alright? We've got this. You and me."

"You and me," Percy repeated in a rough voice. "I like the sound of that."

She kissed his cheek before plopping her head on top of his chest and snuggling into his side. His warm skin brushed against hers as he pulled her tighter against him, and pressed a long kiss to her forehead.

"Goodnight Annabeth," he whispered in her ear.

"Goodnight Percy."

XxxXxxX

That night Annabeth woke up to a loud, resounding bang.

"Percy?" She mumbled.

Annabeth rose from her bed and carefully grabbed her drakon bone sword. She stealthily made her way to the living room.

Oh, she thought as she entered the room. This is another dream.

And it really was. The entire living room was flipped as if she was standing in a mirror. There was a quiet, almost silent ticking sound coming from the clock above the doorway. Everything was bathed in this red light as if the moon had suddenly changed color. There, in the corner of the living room, sat her husband in a small accent chair reading a book. The book appeared to be written in English.

Yep, she thought. Definitely a dream.

"Sorry," Percy said. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"That's okay." she replied cautiously as she slowly made her way over. "What was that loud noise?"

Something was off, and it wasn't just the furniture. Percy's eyes were dark again, just like they were in the first dream. But this time something seemed different. His eyes looked like they were plastic, almost as if he were a doll. They held no life in them.

Percy tilted his head to the side. His usually tanned skin was so pale, it casted a glow around him. His eyes became slits. "What noise?" He asked as his smile grew, showing off his blood ridden teeth.

_Blood ridden_?

"Percy," her voice sounded weird even to her. "Are you alright?"

Suddenly, she was in the air gasping for breath.

Choking- she was choking. Water surrounded her, holding her against the walls and stealing the air from her lungs.

It's okay, she tried to reassure herself. It's just a dream- nothing can hurt me. But gods it felt so real again.

"Did you really think Annabeth," Percy began, looking sinister as he tried to snuff the life out of his wife. "That you could underestimate me? Gods you're always doing that aren't you? What will it take to convince you that I am a god Annabeth. No one can take that away from me, not even you."

Underestimate? Why would she-

And then she blacked out.

XxxXxxX

When Annabeth came too, she discovered herself in a truck.

The truck looked a lot like the one Percy, Grover, and her encountered in Vegas.

Expect this time she was the animal locked in the cage.

"LET ME OUT!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, grasping the steel bars in her hands and shaking them.

The entire room was dark and dusty. Annabeth had no view of the outside or of who was driving. The air smelled of raw fish and the floor so dirty that it turned her bare feet black and gave her splinters. The air was cold, causing her to feel exposed in her pajamas which consisted of a t-shit and sleep shorts. Her sword was gone and she didn't have her emergency flip phone or her wallet. She had nothing.

Annabeth felt overwhelming panic rising in her to the point where she may vomit.

It's just a dream. Justadreamjustadreamjusta-

A bump in the road jerked her to the side, causing her head to collide with a nail in the wall.

Okay, she thought as warm blood dripped down her face from her temple. Not a dream then.

And that definitely wasn't Percy.

**Hey guys! Just a reminder that I love constructive criticism of any kind. Anything will help really. Please leave a review so I know what you did or did not like. I promise I won't bite or be rude. Trust me when I say ANYTHING helps.**

**Thanks!**

**~Anna**


	3. Annabeth 3

The moon's light flowed through the blinds and cast an eerily glow across the musky wooden boards of the room. Dust particles floated around to rest on the dirty white walls. The only sounds that could be heard was the humming from the ceiling fan and the wind blowing through the trees.

Annabeth groaned.

The daughter of Athena shifted so that she was propped against the wall. The dirty old mattress under her turning her legs numb with it's rusted springs.

She turned the best she could to look out the window with her ankle being chained to the wall. Every time she moved she felt a twinge of pain run up her leg and her brain would pound against her skull. Outside in the distance, city lights twinkled, mocking her.

_Fuck,_ she thought._ Fuck fuck fuck-ity fuck fuck._

So life wasn't going great for Annabeth. She had been kidnapped by gods knows what, from her very own living room. To add salt to the wound, whatever monster took her somehow shape-shifted to take on the looks of her husband. She had been knocked out (quite brutally and traumatically, she might add) only to wake up in a zoo truck and be sedated and placed in a dingy old room.

A glimmer attracted Annabeth's eye and she looked down to see that a chain was tied onto her left ankle. The same ankle she broke at sixteen, years ago. It was most likely sprained, judging by the spikes of pain coming from her ankle every time she so much as shifted. To add on to that Annabeth was cold and hungry and she really had to pee. Her husband was going to freak out when he notices that she is gone and she had work tomorrow which she guesses she's going to have to miss.

_Stop is Annabeth. This isn't time to wallow in self pity. _

Taking in her surroundings Annabeth realized that she wasn't in a monster lair. At lease it didn't _look _like a monster lair. It looked like some cheesy stowaway house you only see in movies. Usually, in the Greek mythology world monsters crowded in open spaces, be it under or above ground. Not exactly the haunted house type.

Wait- no, stop. Something was wrong.

_Do you feel that?_ A small voice whispered in her mind.

_Someone is watching you._ It said in a singsong tone that was laced with insanity.

Annabeth's hair stood on end as the cold sudden certainty made her stop in her tracks._ Someone was breathing down her neck._ Actually_ breathing_ on her. She could feel cold puffs of air grazing her skin, sending shudders down her spine. She could feel it. Someone was watching her. Something old, cruel, and sinister. A demonic presence had settled on her shoulders and pushed out the air in her lungs, suffocating her. The presence was so primal and wicked that Annabeth was frozen in fear despite how much her gut was telling her to run. In all her years of being a demigod, Annabeth has learned to trust her gut, but she was chained to a fucking wall and her fear anchored her to the spot.

Annabeth's vision started tunneling and she could feel herself begin to zone out, a sign she was overly stressed and scared. Dissociation became a part of Annabeth's life after Tartarus. When she felt like she couldn't handle something, she would just shut down and the world around her became white noise. Granted this didn't happen often as she usually felt as though she could take on anything. Hubris is her fatal flaw after all, but after Tartarus Annabeth began to doubt herself. She blames herself for her and Percy falling into Tartarus. Especially when Percy gets nightmares or she sees that dark gleam in his eyes. Even though Percy has tried to reassure her that he does not believe Tartarus was her fault_ at all,_ she still couldn't help the dip in her confidence. Her self doubt didn't rear its head often, but when it did it didn't affect Annabeth lightly. She remembered the last time this happened, Annabeth had just gotten back from her interview with one of the top Architect industries in the United States. Granted she was just applying for an internship, but the thought of not being good enough or just flat out rejected to the stepping stone of her life long dream became too much for her and she just started spirling. As soon as she got home she sat down with her back to the couch and zoned out while staring at the dark TV screen. When Percy came home hours later to see her spacing out in front of a blank screen, he freaked out. He assumed she had been attacked by some monster and was seriously injured. When she finally came to, her husband's face was inches away from hers. His dark eyebrows were furrowed and his teeth pinched his bottom lip as he frowned. He kept saying her name over and over again like a prayer as he ran his hands all over her, trying to assess her body for any type of damage as he assumed the worst.

She later realized that she had zoned out for four hours after that interview, as she completely lost all concept of time. She never mentioned this to Percy because there was nothing he could do about it anyway and she knew that would make him feel helpless. She hated it when he felt that way, especially if she was the one that caused the feeling.

So now when she felt as though her soul was detached from her body and began to float up above her, Annabeth was able to recognize what was going on as her thoughts and feelings became background noise. Despite the circumstances, Annabeth felt some semblance of peace from the detachment. She didn't want to deal with this- it just wasn't fair. Before when Annabeth went through demigod experiences it was normal. It was her entire life. Now though, as she has gotten older and has created a new life with her best friend, the thought of losing this new normal life they made together terrified her. She now had a family to lose. The thought of just barely grasping everything that's she's ever wanted with her fingertips, only for it to slip through maddened her.

_Focus Annabeth._ She scolded herself.

_You need to focus. You can't afford to give up now._

Annabeth took a deep breath, leaned against the cool wall and tilted her head back. She tried ignoring the looming presence all around her as she worked out a plan. She needed to think. That's what she was good at. The first thing she did was take in her surroundings. She had one window that was relatively small and far from the ground. She might be just small enough to squeeze through it and make her way up on the roof to gain her bearings. She was pretty sure that the outline of buildings and the distance twinkling lights were from New York City which means it couldn't be too hard to walk until she found a road with a taxi. She didn't have any money, so she would need to find a way to finesse her way home. The only problem was getting to the window. Annabeth's chain to her ankle was heavy and nailed into the wall. If she broke her ankle to release herself, she may not be able to make it on foot. She may be able to pull the nails from the wall if she tried hard enough, but she was worried about the noises that would create as Annabeth had no idea how many monsters were in this house. Yes, something was in this room with her. Probably watching her with some sadistic glee, but were there more of them? And would they try to stop her? There has to be a reason why the house seemed so quiet. Maybe it was for intimidation but what if it was for something else? Whatever it was she didn't want to alert more _beings_ of her conscious state. That would be just her luck.

Annabeth kept still for a moment and tried to tune into where exactly this presence was located. She could still feel it's breath on her neck as a cruel reminder of it's existence, but the only thing behind her was a wall. If the being did decide to show itself, there would be no way she could fight it off unless it had a physical embodiment. However, even if it does have some sort of body, she had no weapon and she was injured. But she couldn't sit around and wait for something to happen. She had a strange feeling they wanted her to do something. They wanted her to take the first move. Why else was no one guarding her? Why else had no one waltzed in here to give her their traumatic back story and tell her all the ways the gods had ruined them and blah blah blah. Even though Annabeth would be playing right into their trap she can't just wait for someone to come and rescue her. Not when Percy had no idea where she was- not when SHE had no idea where she was. They had her right where they wanted her. Trapped in a corner with her tail tucked between her legs and it made her sick. She could do nothing but play right into their hands. She would have to figure it all out later. They didn't exactly give her much to work with, but after all, that was their intention. Right now she just wanted to get out of here. If something happens… well, at least she can say she did something about it and tried her best.

Annabeth slowly got to her feet, wincing as the springs on the mattress creaked under her weight. Putting her hand on the wall to stabilize herself, Annabeth carefully pointed her toes and touched her right foot to the bare wooden floors. She carefully maneuvered her left ankle to avoid putting little weight on it as possible. She lifted herself onto the tiptoes of her uninjured foot to peer out the dirty window. Smoothing her hands up the dusty white walls she fumbled for the window's clasp. Unhinging it, she was able to push the glass out slowly until the window panels were swinging outside. A sharp sense of deja vu flooded through her and the feeling was so strong that she clutched her head and regain her bearings. Had she done this before? There was no way, she doesn't recognize this house at all. She knows that she has never been here before. Yet somehow this whole situation felt oddly and terribly familiar which only added to her sense of impending doom. Puffing out a breath, Annabeth tried to push all of those thoughts out of her head and focus on the task at hand. She once again crouched down to the floor to start wiggling out the nails that were lodged into the wall. She tried to work quickly and quietly as she pulled and wiggled her chain. The nails were rusty, telling Annabeth that this chain had been there for quite some time. With one final tug, she dislodged the nails from the wall and they scattered throughout the room and bounced on the wooden boards of the floor.

(Now if Annabeth had been paying attention, maybe if she had been a little less scattered, a little less tired, she maybe would have noticed the extra holes in the wall created by nails that had been ripped out in a similar fashion before, only to be later nailed back in again- but this time a millimeter to the left to avoid wearing out the wall in the same place. But Annabeth unfortunately, was not paying attention.)

Annabeth closed her eyes and held her breath as she waited to hear the telltale sign of footsteps marching up the stairs or the shouts of outraged monsters. Still, the house was oddly quiet. Exhaling, Annabeth knew her relieved feeling wouldn't last long. The demons were still watching her and they made sure she knew that too. Every step she took felt like her last as they waited to strike. She needed to hurry.

Annabeth was mindful of the nails around her and slowly dragged the mattress so it was right under the window. She wrapped the chain carefully around her arm and held the base of the panel that detached from the wall in her hand. She was careful not to pull the chain to taunt in fear of not having enough mobility to move her foot. Shifting herself upwards, Annabeth caught hold of the window's edge and swung herself up until she could place herself delicately on its ledge. Thank gods for camp or else she wouldn't have had enough upper arm strength to swing herself up so gracefully.

Teetering on the edge Annabeth stabilized herself with her hands. Perching, Annabeth surveyed the city lights, trying to judge how far away the city may be. From looking at the outline of buildings and surveying the brightness of the lights, Annabeth would guess that the city was about 11.5 miles west of her location. Annabeth wasn't sure how accurate her calculation was but she was basing it on personal experience from her many quests. Usually, when New York City's outline could be seen, then it shouldn't be more than 12 or so miles away from the location. Granted, she hoped she wouldn't have to walk that far as that could take up to 4 hours, or even more due to her lack of shoes and sprained ankle. She may just need to pull a page out of her husband's book and hotwire the nearest car. Hopefully, it wouldn't have to be a police cruiser (the car that Percy hot-wired during the time he was kidnapped by Hera), but maybe something more subtle like a suburban van. She didn't have a death wish after all and she certainly didn't want to draw any attention.

Turning her body slightly, Annabeth reached for the roof. Thankfully it was easy to grasp as it was only a few inches above the window. She shifted up until she could place one knee on the roof and pulled her body the rest of the way using her hands. Laying on the roof Annabeth breathed a sigh of relief.

_I am almost there- almost there._ She chanted inside her head.

She walked on the sloping edge of the roof and leaned to the side so she could support herself using the shingles of the roof. It would really suck if after all Annabeth has been through, she died from losing her balance and fell off the house. Would she make it on the news? What would it even say? Architect intern attempts parkour- it goes poorly, Annabeth thought dryly.

Annabeth made her way to the front of the house, barely wobbling as she focused on putting one foot in front of the other. Breathing sharply through her nose, Annabeth leaned over the edge to decipher how far the ground was from the roof. When she saw the distance, Annabeth smothered a joyous and relieved laugh. Luckily the house was partially underground due to the shape of the land. From the front view of the house, you would never have guessed that it was two stories tall. This was due to the way the ground curved up and hid away the first floor of the house. Annabeth can make her way down one story much easier. Using the foot holes in the brick Annabeth was able to reach the ground with only one scraped knee and two scrapped hands. She walked backward until she could see the house in its entirety. She hid behind a tree as she surveyed the scene carefully. Halfway covered by woods you would never guess that this house was here. Annabeth guessed by the style of home and materials used that the house was built sometime in the 70's, which wasn't as old as she was expecting. Surprisingly, the house was completely dark. None of the lights were on and all of the windows were bare. The house was completely vacant with no signs of life, not even furniture. The house did not look like a lair at all. At best it was just haunted, but it had been kept up enough that it could still be lived in.

This whole situation was just weird. I mean a monster, god, or titan broke into her house, rearranged her furniture and then kidnapped her? The strangeness of it all would be humorous if Annabeth herself wasn't living it. I mean come on- the mythology world had been quiet lately! Only a few quests had been assigned since the last time Annabeth set foot in camp and all were able to be taken care of by less experienced campers who reported back to camp safely. There hadn't been any rumors, prophecies, whispers, or any other kind of stirrings that would lead Annabeth to be cautious of any upcoming wars or takeovers.

Annabeth was at her wit's end. All she wanted to do was curl up with Percy and sleep for a couple of years. She didn't care who was after her or what they wanted. She just wanted to be left alone. She was tired of the games and the quests. She was tired of being a hero. She just wanted to be a good architect and wife. Anything and everything else could go to Tartarus for all she cared. This was her life and she got to decide how to live it. No vengeful being was going to take that away from her. Did they seriously think she cared about their _feelings_? She was almost 22 for gods sake! She was too old for that shit.

Shaking her head, Annabeth cleared her thoughts. She was going to get out of here and go home even if it killed her. Then when she gets home, she was going to make Percy binge-watch all of her favorite shows and he's going to let her _and_ he is going to make her blue cookies. She has deserved it after tonight. Making up her mind, Annabeth crept around the house and made her way towards the city while the demon slowly trailed after her.

* * *

**Okay wow. This was 3,074 words like dam son. I feel like this chapter is too long, but I really wanted you guys to understand why Annabeth is going about this situation the way she did. I wanted to show that she is not dumb, just trapped and tired. Sorry that it has been so long since I have updated. Junior year started and I got a job at Walmart so that's always fun. Anyway's I've had a lot on my plate.**

**Btw, if anyone was wondering I was writing Annabeth's disassociation from my own experiences since its a side effect from my newly diagnosed PTSD (yay). So I'm not just writing this from research these are also some of my own personal experiences. If you have any questions or criticisms please don't be afraid to ask/comment, I am very good at responding and love constructive criticism! Seriously. Thank you for reading and pretty please review!**


	4. Annabeth 4

"WHERE IS SHE?"

Annabeth whipped around feeling disoriented. One second she was leaning against a tree, taking a break from her hike to the city, and the next she was on Olympus. She must have fallen asleep despite fighting to stay awake.

"I ASKED YOU A FUCKING QUESTION!"

_Percy? _Annabeth quickly turned around.

Sure enough, there was her husband marching straight towards her with his hands clenched at his sides and fire in his eyes. If she hadn't been the one to design Olympus, she knew there would be cracks forming in the ground with each step due to his powers. Thankfully, since she loved her designs on Olympus and he loved _her_, the ground and everything around him remained intact. Plus, she'd kill him if his destruction forced her to work with the gods any longer.

She was surprised he even had enough control at the moment to actually remember to _not_ wreck the place. He was livid and dangerous. Just being in his presence was enough to make her hair stand on end. And she wasn't even technically _there_, but he was the embodiment of a hurricane. Every cell in her body instinctively screamed: "run!"

Right when he almost barreled through her, she jumped back on reflex, not wanting to test how solid she was in her dream and if she could feel any pain.

"Perseus, you need to calm down."

Was that Hermes? Why was her husband screaming at _Hermes?_

"Calm down?" The son of Poseidon's erratic behavior switched in a split second. One minute he was screaming in Hermes's face, his eyes bright- and the next he stalking towards him sickeningly slow. He looked like a wolf crowding his prey. His eyes so dark they were black. His voice had this deep low quiet quality to it like the Devil was whispering in your ear. Annabeth could see him bristle under his skin, his power thrumming. His shoulders became hunched but his stance was wide.

Annabeth was familiar with this look. He never directed it at her, but it was the expression he wore when a monster hurt her or a man looked at her for a little too long. It was like a hyped-up version of his wolf stare he learned from Lupa. It seemed to say, _however bad you think you are, I'm worse._

"You want me to fucking calm down?"

"Perseus-"

"My wife is missing."

_Ah,_ Annabeth thought half delirious. _That would be her. _

"Yes, I underst-"

"Missing. Lost. Gone. Disappeared from our bed as if she had never even been there in the first place. There is no trace of her, she is just gone. And you think you fucking understand?" Percy scoffed. "Gods are so idiotic its almost laughable if I wasn't the person dealing with it."

If this had been years ago, Annabeth would be worried about the danger Percy was putting himself in, treating a god the way he is. But now that they are both older and she has seen what Percy can do and what he _will do_ for her… well, it wasn't Percy she was worried about.

"Well then, if I am so idiotic why seek me out?" Hermes straightened out his spine in an attempt to reach her husband's 6'4 frame without turning himself into his godly form. Annabeth could see the edge of fear in his eyes.

_Smart boy_. Annabeth thought dryly.

"You owe me a favor, and you're the god of messengers and travel are you not? Take me to her."

"It simply isn't that easy. I don't know where she is."

"Then _find her_."

"I can't-"

"_Try,_" Her husband growled. His jaw clenched so tight that a muscle in his cheek bulged. Hermes flinched.

Sighing, Hermes closed his eyes and hummed. A faint red aura surrounded him and his skin glowed slightly.

He huffed out of his nose as his face took on a look of confusion. He shut his eyes tighter and hummed louder. His aura became so bright that Annabeth had to fight to keep her eyes open despite not actually being there. Percy's eyes, however, were wide open with determination as he stared the god down. His eyes reflected Hermes aura to take on a blood red.

Hermes's eyes opened to reveal a stark white. His pupil and iris were gone, but soonly faded back into existence. His aura dimmed down into nothingness and the humming stopped. He looked at Percy pleadingly.

"I'm sorry, but it's like her presence is masked."

_Masked? _Annabeth thought.

"_Masked_?" Percy said incredulously.

"Hidden," Hermes quickly corrected. "She's alive and on this earth, but I don't know where she is," Hermes repeated like a broken record.

"Try again." Her husband stubbornly stated while he crossed his arms and began to pace.

"I've done all I can do."

"Bullshit, I know you can do more than hum a little song and close your eyes. _Try again_."

"Excuse me? Have you lost your mind? I am still a god! I will not tolera-"

Percy stopped in his tracks before whipping around and grabbing the front of the olympian's shirt. The son of Poseidon shoved the god of thieves against the wall outside the throne room of her design. The god's shoulder blades scraped against the wall painfully as his feet were lifted from the ground. He blinked in shock.

Annabeth felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. He was going way too far. Annabeth was glad that Percy was trying to find her. Of course, she never doubted that he would, but nothing good was going to come out of him shoving a god around. This was escalating way too quickly and there was nothing Annabeth could do but watch.

Percy stared blankly at the god before barking out a laugh, "It's cute that you think you have a choice."

And with that, her loving grabbed Hermes by his throat, lifting him higher. To her morbid surprise, her husband pulled a Hera and threw the god off of Olympus before he could even blink.

And then everything went dark.


End file.
